This week’s life lesson: Life doesn’t happen in a vacuum.
This week’s goal: Philippians 1:21 To live is Christ, and to die is gain.
Since returning home from vacation life has been a whirlwind of emotions. The passing of a dearly loved man in our family has shaken our little corner of the world. I want to breathe a bit deeper tonight, and drink this life in a little bit bigger sips knowing how precious and finite this life truly is.
This week I started thinking about Philippians 1:21. I want to live my life in a manner that reflects the meaning of this verse. We each have a purpose and plan on this earth, and just as the pastor said today at the funeral service, what is important in life is that we “finish the race strong.” I want to see evidence of Christ’s work being done through my life today and everyday. I want to give Christ my life and be amazed by the work that HE can do for the kingdom.
Death and eternity are humbling thoughts to ponder on, but I am so glad that my God is greater. I pray that all of our faith increases….
After one of hubby and I’s best vacations to date, we are back in the PEACH STATE in then sweltering heat! We really enjoyed the cool weather in Washington and Alaska, but our family, friends, and life back in Georgia was calling. (Pictures and more info on our vacation to come just as soon as I can unpack our luggage and clean the mound of laundry that is sky-high!)
But while I have a few minutes I figured I would share just a few things…
Lessons Learned From Vacation:
1. Flying West to East is NOT fun! (We are normally flying to Europe for vacation so we fly to our destination during the night, but we gain time on our return flight. This trip however we left at lunch, and didn’t get into Savannah until midnight. That wasn’t really fun when Hubby had to work the next morning at 5am! Yikes!!!)
2. A pregnant woman gets tired! (I am so used to having a jam packed vacation with sight-seeing and itineraries planned down to the minutes, however I found that on this trip I could not keep up at my normal pace. This really surprised me for some reason. I hadn’t gained much weight, I was barely showing, and I felt fine…but my body reminded me occasionally that I was indeed pregnant and I probably needed to take a rest. My feet hurt more frequently, and I simply felt more fatigued….)
3. Sometimes Cruises are FUN (Being so close to all the Caribbean I have often NOT wanted to cruise around the island on one of the “big ships” and would rather explore an city or region on my own for a more authentic experience. However, with baby on the way an Alaskan cruise was the perfect way to go. This vacation allowed us to see scenery and terrain unlike any that we had ever experienced, all while keeping to our budget and allowing us not to stress about driving or navigating a new location while pregnant.)
4. Fear of flying is all in your head! (Don’t get me wrong, I still don’t LOVE to fly, but when I kept telling myself that “I don’t mind flying” and “I like flying” over and over again…I actually believe it. I found that if I repeated those statements to myself instead of rehearsing my fears I felt much calmer. I know that ultimately GOD is in control, and I should focus less on my fears and more on aligning my desires to His perfect will. That is a work in progress…)
If you are like me, planning and preparing for the trip are almost as thrilling as the travels themselves! I spend an entire year drooling over travel blogs and books, and scouring TripAdvisor reviews in order to pack as many bucket list items as humanly possible into an itinerary. But this year was a little different. Now, don’t get me wrong, I still spend an enormous about of time surfing the web and gather tips and ideas for our trip this year, however it wasn’t until about MARCH that we actually had the summer trip destination finalized (this is VERY unusual for us!)
We threw out lots of fabulous destinations this year, but neither I nor my husband could/would be the one to decide. You see, I years past we have alternated who gets to pick each Summer travel location (he likes the beach…I like cities…) but this year we really wanted to pick a destination together that we would both be really excited about! We had a huge list, and we narrowed it down to a few locations: Iceland, Thailand, Israel, or Vienna/Budapest. These locations were all so very different from one another that we were really having a hard time choosing….and then….BABY ADDIE CHOSE FOR US!
We found out that we were pregnant at the beginning of March, and that pretty much our travel destination. Hiking glaciers in Iceland, touring a conflict-zone in Israel, traveling through sketchy (albeit beautiful) locations in Thailand, and sweating it out with the other millions of tourists in Europe just didn’t fit into the plans this year….
Needless to say, being 5 months pregnant I still want to have an adventure, but I would also like to safety of an American hospital for emergencies (covered by my health insurance!) and a little relaxation, which is not the norm for many of our vacations. We chose to cruise next week with Princess Cruise Lines to several Alaskan ports within the Inside Passage. We will be leaving from Seattle on SUNDAY!!!
Here are some of the adventures we are most excited about:
1. Ketchikan: Lumberjack Competition and Totem Bight National Park
Waring really wanted to see the Lumberjack Competition. Will it be cheesy? Yes, but that is part of it’s charm! Next, we will head to Totem Bight State Park (This is the nerdy part of me…remember, I am a history major!) Here we will see a model of a native american village and historic cedar totem poles that have stood the test of time! (Can you tell I am super excited!?)
2. Juneau: Whale Watching and Mendenhall Glacier
After several hours searching various travel sites, I finally decided to use Orca Enterprises for our Juneau Whale Watching Experience. Many sites suggest using Harv and Marv’s (which has excellent reviews), however we opted for a slightly bigger ship so that the water wouldn’t be quite to rocky. Although we will be travelling through an inlet, baby Addie is precious cargo, and I figured that we would err on the side of precaution! This company touts a 99.9% whale sighting records, and will refund 50% of your trip costs if you do not see one of these beautiful creatures! I. CAN’T. WAIT!
After a (hopefully) amazing morning of whale watching, we will then arrive via taxi to Mendenhall Glacier. (Bucket List Item 21: SEE A GLACIER…check!!!)
THIS was by far the hardest tour to book. We knew that we wanted to explore past the cruise port, but we just weren’t sure which route to take. Many visitors seemed to take the historic railway through White Pass Summit and into the Canadian Yukon, however I just couldn’t image paying the $$$ price and spending almost 7 hours (!!!) on a train!
So, we opted to travel with Frontier Excursions and Adventures. We will ride in a 20 passenger van/bus along a similar route as the railway, but we will get to stop, stretch our legs, and take LOTS of pictures along the way. We will down Klondike Highway from Skagway to Carcross and the Emerald Lake. We will stand on the shores of Lake Bennett and view the world’s tiniest dessert (how strange!), as well as visit the summer dog sledding training camp for the Iditarod!
Our trip is going to be filled with so much adventure, I am so glad that BABY ADDIE helped pick this trip for us! Whenever I get back I will post my tips and reviews, as well as an inordinate amount of pictures!
With the annual Hubby/Wifey (and baby on the way) adventure planned, payed, and (partially) packed for, there is only one thing left to do…(gulp)…FLY!
Yikes! Up up and away!
I have traveled on air planes since I was less than three years old. I used to find it thrilling, however after a few maintenance issues and troubling flight misadventures, flying seems now to be a necessary evil that I must overcome every few months! To make matters worse, dear hubby is not to keen on flying himself. We are a pretty sight to be seen right before boarding time I am afraid!
I can’t be the only one out there with a semi-irrational fear of flying!? Being the teacher that I am, I firmly believe that knowledge is power, so naturally I have turned to the web to gain some tips/tools/and strategies to combat my case of cold feet when it comes to flight.
I feel better about myself knowing that the editor in chief of Budget Travel Magazine herself is fearful of flying!
If you find yourself in turbulence, close your eyes and imagine you are on the back of school bus driving down a dirt road.
Bring a photo or guide book of your destination and focus on the end result!
If you are really scared your are going to freak out mid-flight, let your flight attendant know your a little fearful at the very beginning of the flight, not when you start to go ape…
PRAY!!!! (You should probably be doing this already…We all should be doing a lot more of this I am afraid…)
And if all of these tips don’t work….there is always Valium!
The count down is on…Seattle on Saturday and Alaska on Sunday!
For some reason this year, I put “go to an epic concert” on my 2013 Bucket List, with no plans of attending any major event. I had a passing thought about going to Bonaroo…(and then we found out we were pregnant…and the thought passed rather quickly!) Then, my bestest went to a truly epic Paul McCartney concert, and fulfilled a life-long dream! But, alas….the year is half way over and I still had no big plans….until….tonight….
My husband and I have always thought it would be awesome to go to a Red Hot Chili Peppers concert, but they seem like they are always touring on the other side of the world…until SEPTEMBER! They are going to be at Music Midtown Festival in Atlanta this year! I am so excited! Yes, I will be pretty pregnant…but I can still rock…right?? I think crowd surfing may be out this time though.
So excited! Anyone else got an EPIC Concert planned for this year? Let me kno!
Summer time to me means: travel and new experiences, icee pops and watermelon, suntan lotion and salty air, sleeping in and snuggling with my furbaby, Miss Lily, and LIST!
Many guys and gals are feeling nostalgic over past summertime memories, and children dream of all the days of fun ahead as the school year draws to an end. Why not take advantage of this precious time a and make valuable use of your time by creating a Summer ToDo List of your own.
SO, for those who know me I am a list maker extraordinaire! No, serious, I feel lost without my calendar planner and notebook. I keep by bucket list for the year with me at all times because I never want to miss an opportunity to work towards a goal. I have found that if I keep those bucket list goals visible, then they are much more likely to get accomplished! I also keep my two favorite books, 1000 Places to See Before You Die and 1000 Places to See Before You Die US and Canada, in my car with me because you never know when an opportunity to explore and adventure will arise.
I don’t want to look back at the end of my life (whether that is 60 years from now, or tomorrow) and wonder where my life went. I believe that Christ calls of each to be intentional with the life we have been given, no matter how long (or short) we may have.
With all of that being said….
My husband and I are about to embark on a gloriously adventurous bucket list task of becoming parents! We will be expecting a beautiful baby GIRL in December this year. Adeline Faye (named after my grandmothers, who are two of my favorite women role models a girl could ask for) will forever change our lives.
Because life on earth is so beautiful, and finite, and fleeting, I want to chronicle my little piece of history here with my amazing family and friends. Follow along in my journey to work towards those drops in the bucket along life’s way! I want to stay focused, but I never want to be so focused that I overlook Christ’s calling….say a little prayer for me 🙂
Daily Drops in the Bucket 